Magical Revelation
by S-a-r-a-h-D-x3
Summary: Fourteen year old Danielle Taylor is normal. Or so she thinks. One day, she receives a letter from Hogwarts telling her that she is a witch. She is whisked off to Hogwarts for adventure, romance, and a magical existence.


_Hey! Well I hope you enjoy this story. It took a while to write. I had to flip through the Harry Potter books to get all the details right. Just so you know, the disaster at the Quidditch World Cup happened, but the Triwizard Tournament and all that doesn't happen. I may not continue this story, so please review if you liked it! Thank you!_

**Magical Revelation**

Shouting and yelling erupted from the desks surrounding Danielle Taylor. It was the last day of school, and the students were all ecstatic. With a smirk pasted on her face, and her ears still ringing from all the noise, Danielle followed the crowd of students through the hall and outside, to their freedom. Standing in front of her was Danielle's best friend, Tracy.

" Tracy!" Danielle screeched with excitement and ran to embrace her friend. Tracy went to a boarding school in northern California, which was about a sixteen hour drive. They hardly got to see each other, except for holidays and, of course, summer vacation. "I've missed you so much!"

"I've missed you too!" Tracy pulled out of Danielle's arms. "C'mon, let's get out of here!" The twp made their way through the crowds of students, and walked about a mile to the beach.

The two of them had planned this day. They had decided to go to the beach to celebrate. They would swim, surf, and tan their troubles away. The two best friends lay on their towels, deep in conversation.

"I wish I could see you more often." Danielle said glumly. Tracy shook her head sadly.

"I know," she said while looking at the sand, drawing pictures with it using her fingers. Danielle sat up and brushed some sand out of her chestnut hair. She gazed out into the deep blue sea.

"I just wish we went to the same school." The wind blew through Danielle's hair, tossing it carelessly in all directions. They were both fourteen, and going into the ninth grade. To them, summer was a vacation from all their problems and stress. It was freedom.

"I know." Tracy smiled.

"Well it's getting late," Danielle began. "I should probably go home."

"Alright. I'll see you tomorrow?" Tracy asked.

"Of course!" Danielle replied. She was a little disappointed that the last day of school was over.

"Okay. See you tomorrow!" Tracy stood up and brushed sand off herself. Danielle did the same, and started to walk home.

The next month was filled with days at the beach, amusement parks, and shopping. Danielle spent nearly every day with Tracy. They took advantage of the time that they had; soon it would all be over.

Danielle arrived at home one day as the sun was setting. Her emerald eyes twinkled in the last bit of sunlight as the sun disappeared. She slipped into her pajamas and hopped into bed. She closed her eyes, but could not bring herself to fall asleep. This wasn't unusual for Danielle, so she just laid there in her thoughts. She glanced at the clock. It read 12:02.

_Hoot! Hoot! _The sound of an owl in a nearby tree made her spring up. There weren't very many owls in the area. The loud noise continued, and finally after about ten minutes it faded into the distance. All of a sudden, she heard voices in the kitchen. She managed to pull herself out of bed and tip toed out of her room.

"I think we should discuss this matter," her mother was speaking quietly. Danielle sunk down by the kitchen door, listening. By the sound of it, this was a serious issue. Her mother's voice sounded a little frustrated, yet concerned.

"I've told you," her father started. "There's nothing to discuss. Our daughter will lead a normal life, none of this-this nonsense!" Danielle began to listen more intensely. This involved her, and even though she knew eavesdropping was wrong, she had a right to know.

"But she should have a choice!" her mother cried in protest. "What if she wants this? She's already missed out on three full years, and before she misses out on another I want to be sure that it's what she wants, not just what we want!" Danielle stood up, waiting for the perfect moment to interrupt. She needed to know what was going on.

"No," her father replied shortly. "That world is much too dangerous. It's easy to get killed in a world like that!"

"I don't understand why we can't just tell her and get her thoughts on the matter?" her mother sounded desperate. Danielle held her breathe and stepped forward.

"Tell me what?" Danielle asked, her voice was slightly demanding.

"Nothing, dear, go back to bed-" her father began, but her mother cut him off.

"No! No, I am going to tell her. She has to know." Her mother grabbed something off the table to her side and shoved it towards Danielle. Danielle took it from her mother and stared at it. It was a letter. It was encased in a yellowish envelope, and it was very bulky. The address was written in emerald ink. It was addressed to her. There was something peculiar about this letter. She couldn't quit place it- maybe it was the way her name was written in a handwritten script, or the fact that there was no stamp. She glanced up at her mother, who nodded in encouragement. She began to tear open the letter, and pull out its contents. It read:

HOGWARTS SCHOOL

_of_ WITCHCRAFT _and_ WIZARDRY

Headmaster: Albus Dumbledore

_(Order of Merlin, First Class, Grand Sorc., Chf. Warlock, Supreme Mugwump, International Confed. of Wizards) _

Dear Ms. Taylor,

We are pleased to inform you that you have been accepted at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Please find enclosed a list of all necessary books, equipment, and information.

Term begins on September 1. We await your owl by no later than July 31.

Yours Sincerely,

Minerva McGonagall,

_Deputy Head Mistress _

Danielle looked at the letter, re-reading it over and over. She was accepted into some sort of boarding school… for _witches and wizards? _What was this, some sort of joke? As much as she wished there was such a thing, she knew that there was not. She furrowed her eyebrows and gave her parents a curious glare.

"A-a boarding school?" It was all Danielle could say. What was all that talk she had heard her father saying, about another world?

"No, well, um, yes… in a way." Her mother seemed like she couldn't quite get the right words out. "It's a school for witches and wizards… like you." Danielle couldn't help but think that her own mother was crazy. "I-I wish I could prove it to you, but I can't, you see, I'm not a witch. Your grandmother was, though. That's where you got it from. So is my brother. We weren't sure if you were, until, well, until this letter came."

"Define _witch_…" Danielle basically commanded.

"You can do magic. You know, with a wand." Danielle couldn't help but snort at this. Her father was sitting at the other end of the dining table, simply shaking his head.

"A_ wand?_" Danielle was now certain that her mother was crazy.

"I'll prove it to you." Her mother rose from her seat, grabbed some paper and scribbled a note on it. Danielle leaned over to read it, but her mother snatched it away. She walked over to the open window, and stuck out her hand. A brown owl appeared out of nowhere, and took it in his claws. It flew out into the distance. Danielle was shocked. Not only had she never seen an owl, but she had never seen an owl _deliver mail_. "I have accepted on your behalf. They will send someone over to help you get supplies, and they will prove it to you. I have been writing to the headmaster for almost a week now, and he says that everything has been figured out. Now get some rest, there's a big day awaiting you tomorrow." Danielle took the envelope to her room with her. She couldn't sleep. Her mother must be crazy. Or maybe… maybe this could be real? No, it couldn't, Danielle decided. There was a knock on her room door. It was her mother.

"I know this has been crazy," her mother said. "But please, bear with me. Please don't mention it to anyone, okay?"

"Okay…" Danielle replied hesitantly. "But, Mom?"

"Yes?"

"It says here that this school is in England…"

"Yes. As you know, your grandmother was born in London, and she went to school at Hogwarts. It is the best Wizarding school out there, and I want only the best for you. Of course, it seems far, but distance doesn't matter in the wizarding world. They do you a school here, in America, but Hogwarts is ten times better. Don't worry though; we can visit during the holidays and summer. I'll write you once a week." Danielle frowned. If this _was_ real, she didn't want to have to leave home… or the country. Her mother then left the room, leaving Danielle to her thoughts. She didn't know what to think anymore, and then finally when she couldn't take any longer, she fell asleep.

_Thump. Thump._ A continuous loud banging noise was echoing throughout the house. It almost sounded like footsteps. Danielle didn't care what it was, all she wanted was to go back to sleep. "Shut up!" she screeched from her room. She snatched her pillow up and shoved it over her scowling face. There was a knock on the door of her room. "What?" she asked with a growl. The door slowly opened, and as tired as she had been a second ago, what she saw in front of her had completely woken her up.

Standing in front of her was some sort of a giant. Its height alone could have easily doubled her, and she was pretty sure he could kill her just by sitting on her. Its hair was long and tangled; its beard hung down its chest and ended slightly above its waistline. It had soft, gentle eyes and rosy cheeks. It extended its enormous hand.

"Nice ter meet ya," said the giant. "I'm Rubeus Hagrid, gamekeeper at Hogwarts." Danielle found that she couldn't move. Her throat felt as if it had swollen to twice its size. She forced her shaking hand up into his slowly, and his hand engulfed her whole hand along with her wrist.

"S-so it's r-real?" Danielle asked.

"Whadaya mean is it real?" Rubeus Hagrid looked shocked. "O' course it's real."

"Could-could you show me some… magic?" Danielle still felt that she needed some proof before going along with all of this. Of course, she had always dreamt of magic as a little girl, but as she grew older she had faced the cruel fact that there was no such thing as magic. Now that her family was trying to tell her that there was such a thing, she didn't want to get too excited unless she was sure.

"I knew you was gonna ask that." Rubeus Hagrid replied with a slight chuckle. He pulled a pink flowery umbrella from behind him. "Now, I'm not exactly 'allowed' ter do magic. I would appreciate ya not sayin' nothin'." Danielle nodded slowly in agreement. She wondered exactly why he wasn't allowed to do magic. He lifted up his pink umbrella and aimed it at a book lying on her desk. He flicked his wrist and the book hovered above the desk and flapped around the room. Danielle's mouth was wide-open in shock. _Magic was real._ It was an amazing feeling. It spread throughout her entire body and she grinned with excitement.

"When can I get a wand, Rubeus?" Danielle asked excitedly, bobbing up and down. She was scared that this was a dream and that she would wake up.

"Please," he replied. "Call me Hagrid. An' we'll be goin' today if ya don' mind."

"No, not at all!" Danielle shouted. She wanted to do magic more than anything. "Wait… Hagrid?" Danielle asked slowly.

"Yes?" Hagrid answered, craning his neck to look down.

"What if-what if I'm not a witch and there's a mistake?" Danielle looked down at the ground sadly.

"O' course yer a witch! Dumbledore ain't stupid! He wouldn't 'ave sent you the letter if ya weren't." Hagrid almost look surprised that she had even wondered.

"Okay." Danielle was back to grinning again. They made their way out of her room, and Hagrid had to crouch down and turn sideways to fit through her door. Her mother was sitting at the kitchen table with a smile, while her father looked rather grouchy.

"Have fun!" her mother beamed. Hagrid and Danielle stepped outside the house.

"Alright, now I'm sure ya know that London is a bit far from here," Hagrid said. "But it don' matter 'cause we'll be usin' a portkey."

"What's that?" Danielle asked curiously, interested in anything that had to do with magic.

"Well, er, basicly we're gonna touch that newspaper," Hagrid pointed to a soggy newspaper on her front lawn. "An' it'll take us ter London. Don' let go of it, though." She did as she was told, and she and Hagrid grasped the newspaper. All of a sudden there was no ground beneath her feet, and she clutched onto the wet newspaper for dear life. She was surrounded in darkness. She couldn't breathe. She started panicking, trying to hyper-ventilate but there was no air. Finally, she felt ground beneath her feet. She felt oxygen enter her lungs. She gasped sharply for air. They were in some sort of old-fashioned restaurant. She dropped the newspaper on the ground. She read a lit-up sign that said "The Leaky Cauldron." Hagrid guided her over to a brick wall in the back, and started poking at bricks with his umbrella, until they all disappeared, revealing an archway leading into a crowded street. Here, everyone was dressed in robes. Three little boys were staring through the window of a shop called Eeylop's Owl Emporium, pointing out their favorite owls. There were brooms in a window, and a very sleek-looking broom called a Firebolt resting on a pillow in the window. Ahead of them was a huge building that looked as if it was made of marble labeled "Gringotts."

"Welcome to Diagon Alley. That's our first stop." Hagrid said, pointing at the white marble building in front of them. "Gringotts. The wizard bank."

"But I didn't bring any money…" Danielle started looking worried.

"Don' worry," Hagrid assured her. "Yer money's no good here anyway. You need wizard money."

"But I don't have that either!" Danielle said.

"Well yer grandma, as ya know, was a witch. She left an account to the next witch in 'er family line. Actually, your grandmother was quite rich. I wouldn't have ter worry 'bout money much if I was you." Danielle followed Hagrid towards Gringotts. They entered as two strange looking creatures bowed them in. They had pointy, long beards and lengthy fingers. They were about a foot shorter than Danielle. She couldn't help but stare at their greenish hue and rather large ears.

"Yeah, that's a goblin." Hagrid said casually as he made his way through the door. There was a very long counter and more goblins were sitting behind it at work. They followed yet another goblin through a dark dirt tunnel, and once they had a bag full of her grandmother's wizard money, they made their way back out onto the street.

"So, er, we've got to getcha some of the first year items along with the fourth year items." Hagrid said looking down at some sort of list.

"What do you mean?" Danielle asked.

"Well, yer startin' school three years late. Most witches an' wizards start at eleven, but yer parents didn' want ya to start then." Hearing this dropped Danielle's spirits.

"So… I'm behind on… everything." Danielle was furious with her parents. If it was up to her father, she would never have known.

"Don't you worry." Hagrid reassured her. "Dumbledore will be teaching ya privately, ter catch you up on things. So fer the firs' few weeks or so, you'll be goin' to Dumbledore's office." This made Danielle feel a bit better; at least she wouldn't have to embarrass herself in a class full of experienced witches and wizards. "Well we should get yer books firs'. The shop's over there."

They arrived at the entrance to a store called Flourish and Blotts. Hagrid fished through the shelves. He handed her _The Standard Book of Spells, Grade 1_ followed by _The Standard Book of Spells, Grade 2._

"I thought that I was in my fourth year?" Danielle looked confused.

"Yes, well ya need ter catch up on things, like I said." Hagrid handed her _The Standard Book of Spells, Grade 3._ Danielle found her way to a magazine rack. She snatched up the magazine and examined it. It was titled SCENES OF TERROR AT THE QUIDDITCH WORLD CUP. There was a picture of the sky, and over a group of trees there was some sort of skull with a snake as a tongue drawn in the sky with green smoke, and the picture was _moving_. She watched the stars twinkle and the symbol in the sky vanish for about five minutes.

"Hagrid?" Danielle asked. Hagrid's eyes perked up and turned his attention to Danielle. "What's Quidditch?"

"It's a sport played on broomsticks." He answered. "Yeh'll learn all about it at Hogwarts."

"Look at this." She handed Hagrid the newspaper. Hagrid returned the paper to her with an expression of sorrow.

"I know. It must 'ave something to do with You-Know-Who. I heard all 'bout it." Hagrid said, leaving Danielle with many questions.

"Actually, I don't know who." She replied.

"Well, I just don' like sayin' that name. He's an evil wizard, he is. Killed so many innocent people. See, thirteen years ago, he tried to use the Killin' Curse on a little boy named Harry Potter. Fer some reason, he didn' kill 'im. He lost his power and vanished, and many people believe that he's back. Harry was the only one ter ever survive that curse; he's famous now. Goes to Hogwarts, he does. Very nice, I'm sure you'll meet 'im."

"But You-Know-Who… what is his real name?" Danielle wanted to know.

"Well alrigh', it's… it's… _Voldemort_." He whispered, obviously not wanting anyone to hear.

"Voldemort?" Danielle asked, maybe a little too loudly.

"Shh! Shh! Yes, now don' say it too loudly!" Hagrid said frantically. "now don' go repeatin' that name everywhere." Hagrid returned to shuffling through the book shelves and handed Danielle _The Standard Book of Spells, Grade 4._ They shopped around a bit more, adding many more books such as _A History of Magic_. "Well that oughtta do it." Hagrid decided. The shopkeeper took about ten minutes to charge everything, mainly because there were around twenty different books.

"That will be thirteen galleons." She replied, shoving the books into bags.

"Which ones are galleons?" Danielle whispered to Hagrid.

"That would be them gold ones." Danielle paid the shopkeeper, and they left.

They entered a cauldron shop and bought a pewter cauldron. They then went to Madam Malkin's Robes for All Occasions, which lived up to it's name because Danielle purchased three work robes, a winter cloak, and dress robes. She then used some extra money to get some robes of colors of her choosing, instead of black. She chose light blue, pink, and bright green robes. They didn't have such vibrant colors on display, but with a flick of the wrist, Madam Malkin changed a boring grey robe into an exciting salmon robe. Although she would probably hardly ever wear them at school, they were good to have just in case. Besides, they were cute. She showed Hagrid, who was waiting outside, what she had bought. He rolled his eyes at the brightly colored robes she had bought.

"Girls." Hagrid said, staring at the bright green robe. She reluctantly bought a black pointy hat, which in her eyes was almost like a stereotype that you could wear.

"It's up ter you, but if ya want you can get a broomstick. Many fourth years have 'em." Hagrid said, directing her to a shop for brooms. She entered and looked around. There was a bright display of a nice red and orange broom called a Firebolt.

"Ah, yes." Hagrid said. "The Firebolt. It's s'pposed to be a very good broom. Harry has one, ya know." It was expensive, but she had scarcely enough left after purchasing it for whatever other supplies she needed.

They then went to Eeylop's Owl Emporium. She picked out a cute, tiny owl that was white with black spots. She named it Candi. The named seemed to suit the cute and cuddly owl. They made their way to the wand shop, which she had been awaiting for hours. They entered Ollivander's, and arrived at the counter.

"Hello, there," said a tall, gangly man with a soft voice. Danielle smiled.

"Hi," she replied sweetly. "I'm looking to buy a wand."

"Yes, yes." He turned around to face several boxes that were piled up. He snapped his fingers and a tape measure began to extend itself, taking measurements of Danielle's arm. "Right or left hand?" he asked while examining different boxes.

"Well, I'm left-handed." She said. He continued rummaging through different boxes, and then pulled out a few boxes. He pulled a wand out of one of the boxes.

"Try this. Ten inches. Oak and phoenix feather. Quite bendable, actually." He handed the wand to Danielle, who just stared at it.

"Give it a flick." Ollivander seemed impatient. She flicked her wrist with excitement, but nothing happened. "No, not that one." He grabbed another one and handed it to her. "This one is rather nice. Mahogany and unicorn hair. Nine inches." Danielle grabbed the wand out of his hand. It was slightly a reddish hue. She smiled and swished it through the air. Purple sparks flew from the end like fireworks. She laughed and touched the wand. It was smooth to the touch, and just the right length according to her arm.

"Perfect match!" Ollivander started to charge it up. "That will be eight galleons."

Danielle left Diagon Alley in high spirits. They took yet another portkey back to her house in California, where she and Hagrid said their goodbyes.

"Well, I'll see yer on September firs'. Don' ferget, now." Hagrid said.

"Okay, see you then!" Danielle smiled and waved. "Oh, and Hagrid?"

"Yes?"

"Thank you." Hagrid smiled and turned around to find the third portkey of the day. He put a hand on a metal bucket, and vanished. Danielle sprinted back into the house to show her mother her new stuff.

"Look, mom!" Danielle called from the living room. "Look, I got my own wand!" She held it up to show her. Danielle sat down and instantly opened _The Standard Book of Spells, Grade 1._ She decided that she had to start somewhere.

"_Lumos!_" she called out excitedly. Nothing happened. "_Lumos!_" She shook her wand violently. Her mother sat next to her.

"Try this," her mother put her own hand over her daughter's and guided it in a flicking motion. "Now try it with the spell…"

"_Lumos!_" Danielle shouted with a flick of her wand. The tip of it lit up brightly, almost like a lamp. The golden light sparkled throughout the room. "Yes!" She ran into the kitchen to show her father.

"Look, Dad!" she shoved the glowing wand in his face. Her father gave her a forced smile.

"Yes, very good." He said half-heartedly, and turned around. She rolled her eyes and went back into the living room to practice more spells.

She had packed everything up for the first of September. She had been awaiting the day for a very long time now, and finally it was here. It was so hard not telling Tracy all of this, especially since they were best friends and shared everything with each other. She and her mother were carrying all of her stuff. They took a portkey, and by this time Danielle was used to it. They arrived at the King's Cross Station. She was supposed to depart from station nine and three-quarters. Danielle thought that this was odd, but everything that had happened to her this summer had been odd. The two of them stared at stations nine and ten. A barrier stood between the two stations.

"Um, Mom?" Danielle asked, confused.

"Don't worry, I've seen your uncle do this seven times." Her mom said, while loading all of Danielle's stuff into a cart so that she could push it. She placed Candi, Danielle's owl, on top of everything. "Your lucky, you know. I wish I had gotten my mother's gift. Unfortunately, I got my father's muggle genes."

"M-muggle?" Danielle asked, obviously this word was new to her.

"Yes, non-magical people… like me and your father."

"Oh."

"Alright then. What you're going to do is run straight into that barrier." Her mother said matter-of-factly.

"_What?_" Danielle thought that this idea was the stupidest idea she had ever heard.

"Don't question it, dear. Just do it. It will take you to the Hogwarts Express." Her mother motioned her to go. "Don't worry; I'll be there right after you." Danielle looked from her mother to the barrier. _Well, I guess it's worth a shot…_ Danielle thought. She ran towards the wall. She closed her eyes, awaiting her cart to smash into the wall, and Candi to screech in pain… but it didn't happen. She opened her eyes to find herself next to a sign that read station nine and three-quarters. Her mother appeared behind her a minute later.

"Well, I guess I should say goodbye." Her mother hugged her. "Your father says goodbye, too. He just doesn't accept this magical lifestyle. Don't worry about him, though. You have fun."

"All aboard!" the engineer called, and Danielle stepped forward while waving back to her mother. The train was a maroon color, and smoke was coming out of the top. It looked freshly painted, and had gold script on it that read _The Hogwarts Express_. Without looking back, Danielle stepped onto the train, leaving her past life as a muggle behind.


End file.
